Perspective
by sg1cat
Summary: Our worlds are ruled by perception, which can depend completely on your perspective. Sometimes a different view of things is all that's needed to change everything. Megamind and Roxanne are about to experience a serious shift in their perspectives, as are Metroman and Minion. Who knows what will happen? Pre-movie AU. Rating will be upgraded to Mature in future chapters.
1. Chapter 1

"Scream all you want, Miss Richie, I'm afraid nobody can hear you!"

The large chamber of Evil Lair echoed with Megamind's proclamation as the bag was yanked from the brunette reporter's head. She sighed heavily and blinked, her eyes adjusting to the sudden brightness. The room was silent as she stared at the blue alien, irritation clear on her face. He watched her eagerly, as though he expected that the terror of her situation would suddenly dawn upon her and she'd finally oblige him with the screams he sought so desperately each time they did this.

Or, rather, each time he did this to her. Which was a lot.

It had to be the third time this month.

"Really, Megamind?" Roxanne asked with a droll and exasperated voice. "Do you _really_ think I'm going to scream for you?" The blue alien squirmed in his chair uncomfortably as she confronted him with the harsh reality. He glanced insecurely over to Minion, who was standing beside the woman, the bag clutched in his large mechanical hand. The large shoulders simply shrugged.

"I have _never_ screamed in all the years we've been doing this," she continued, sighing,"What could make you _possibly_ think I'm going to start now?" she asked, her voice weary as she lifting an eyebrow at him in annoyance.

Megamind's jaw slackened while he thought about her question. The sassy reporter tilted her head, waiting patiently for his answer, her eyes drilling into him unwaveringly. His expression sank under the weight of her assertion as her stare took its toll. Her smirk grew more, the further his smile faded.

Suddenly he snapped his fingers and pointed at her accusingly, leaning forward in the chair.

"That's not true!" he proclaimed, as his eyes flew open in excitement. He met her gaze sharply with a smirk of his own and Roxanne sat back, her expression suddenly one of apprehension. "You did scream once, I remember it quite clearly!" She furrowed her brow in disbelief and distress when he refuted her claim with this charge. Clearly, she was at a loss by his reference.

Megamind said nothing more, but crossed his arms triumphantly and leaned back in his chair. He took his turn to smirk at her now and waited patiently, knowing the memory would return to her shortly.

"You did scream, Miss Richie," Minion confirmed, trying to be helpful to his boss. She glanced up at the fish with the same irate expression, then looked back at Megamind.

Roxanne sat up straight in her chair, her indignant posture clearly indicating that she would have crossed her arms in answer, if they weren't so typically bound behind her. Her brown eyebrows knitted together in confusion as she stared at his celebratory grin, her irritation growing by the second. Suddenly it came to her.

"NO," she protested firmly, frowning as his smirk grew six times more wicked when he saw the recognition on her face. "THAT does NOT count."

Megamind sat forward on the very edge of his chair, gripping its armrests as a giddy expression lit his face while he pressed his advantage. "Oh, yes it does. You screamed!" he answered with a gleeful voice.

"Your stupid machine jabbed me in the _butt_!" she complained bitterly, the embarrassment from the years old incident now suddenly just as fresh as it was then. Her mortification was apparent on her cheeks as she flushed from the tips of her ears all the way down to the somewhat low cut neck of her dress.

During that kidnapping so long ago, one of his machines had experienced a typical Megamind malfunction, but this one had been a little too close to her at the time. A part shot out when the apparatus experienced a small bang, like the backfire of a car. Said projectile did, indeed, jab her in the butt.

No skin was broken but it tore her skirt, leaving a big hole where a considerable amount of her tender, curved flesh was quite visible. It even left a small bruise, and she felt mild discomfort for the next week or more whenever she tried to sit on that cheek.

The awkwardness that ensued had been embarrassing to them all, and the situation was not made better by the phallic shape of the machine's offending, ejected part. Roxanne had to admit, however, that Megamind and Minion both did their best to accommodate her and make up for it, behaving like perfect gentlemen.

Well, almost.

Though she never said anything about it to anyone, she still swears to this day that she more than once caught Megamind staring at her bared behind, before all was said and done.

Her skin flushed a deeper crimson yet as the memory washed over her in full detail, as crisp as if it were yesterday. The blue alien grinned further at the sight of her reaction.

She protested further, "I wasn't scared, it surprised me!"

"Oh yes, I'm sure you were only 'surprised', and not terrified by my eeevil machine!" he answered gleefully, making air quotes with his fingers as he said the word 'surprised'.

Fuming, she added bitterly, "and, it hurt! But more than anything, it was embarrassing!

"Well as I told you then, I'm sorry you were hurt and embarrassed. BUT," he paused, snickering when he used that word, while Roxanne only rolled her eyes and seethed even more at his juvenile and rather lame pun, "be that as it may, you screamed!" he answered with a mirthful voice while Roxanne fumed, her brow now creasing in anger as he started a small bout of maniacal laughing at his at his apparent triumph. He glanced over at Minion who only half grinned at this turn of the banter, the fish looking more uneasy than anything by the memory of Roxanne's humiliation.

All the while, the reporter fixed them both with a disapproving glare, the flush of her chagrin still bright on her cheeks and ears. She stewed in frustration for a few moments. Setting her jaw, she decided she'd had enough of being on the defensive. Two could play this game.

Lifting an eyebrow, Roxanne's lips twisted in a vicious smirk as she fired back.

"Fine. So you admit that the only way you can make me _scream_ is to _poke_ _me in the ass_?"

Megamind's laughter turned to loud fits of choking as her tone left no doubt the double entendre that she had fully intended. The bag fell as Minion's hands both flew to cover his mouth, the fish half shrieking a gasp in innocent shock at her naughty undertone. Roxanne smugly grinned as she watched with satisfaction the lavender flush that instantly covered the blue alien's cheeks, neck, and ears. His eyes were wide as he stared at her in disbelief while he half choked, half stammered protestations in a stream of incoherent babble.

Roxanne said nothing, but grinned with satisfaction. He stumbled over his own half-formed words, their eyes locked as his embarrassment grew with each passing moment, and along with it, her wickedly pleased smile. Minion stood quiet as a mouse, his hands unmoved from his mouth as he looked back and forth from reporter to his boss and back, repeatedly, his eyes wide as saucers.

Finally, Megamind stood in frustration, the sudden motion sending his chair wheeling away as he cleared his throat conspicuously. "Oh, let's just call your boyfriend in tights and light this party!" He stared down at Miss Richie as her smile bloomed into sweet amusement at him. He frowned at her and crossed his arms at her adoring smile while Minion continued to look from his friend down to the woman and back again.

"Well?!" Megamind complained bitterly to Minion, forcing himself to look away from Roxanne's adorable smile. Why was it so hard to take his eyes off of her?

Jumping at Megamind's impatient bark, Minion scurried over to the console and started to work various controls.

"So what is it this week, Megamind?" Roxanne asked with considerably less interest, this week's scheme being far less entertaining to her than their banter. Not that she found the banter interesting or engaging. No, she never enjoyed that, she told herself. It was just...less boring to her then the evil plot du jour.

"Oh, wouldn't you like to know?" Megamind crowed, walking over to her slowly. He grinned as he approached, joining his hands behind his back.

"Not really," she muttered.

"That way you can tell your boyfriend when he gets here?" he asked further with a chuckle as he leaned down to come near her. "Not that it would help. He's doomed this time," the blue alien assured her with a low voice as he came within inches of her face. Roxanne's breath didn't quicken, she assured herself. It was...chilly. Yes, that was it.

The cold would also explain her goosebumps.

Green eyes stared into blues as he smirked at her, chuckling softly. Her eyes were equally playful, her smile lilting. "Is it another giant robot?" she asked sarcastically with feigned excitement, "Maybe with spikes?" His eyes narrowed slightly at her as she continued, his smile fading slightly. "Ooh, ooh! I know! You could put a laser or two on it, just to make it _original_!" There had been at least 3 robots this year alone with spikes and lasers.

Megamind seemed unfazed by her accusations of the banality of his evil, though her nearness had succeeded in increasing his pulse, as always. He breathed in the scent of her as he hovered near her face, his gaze still locked with hers as she smirked at him. She lifted her eyebrows as he stared back in silence.

"You can guess all you want, but you'll never figure it out," he finally answered with more confidence than she expected. Her eyebrows lifted even higher.

"Oh?" Roxanne asked, "are you finally going to do something unexpected?" she smirked all the more as he stared back at her. Somehow she hadn't noticed how much closer he had leaned in, or how much faster her breath was coming.

He chuckled deeply, but that definitely did not send that chill down her spine. "You'll just have to wait and see..." he told her in a low voice, smiling from ear to ear.

Roxanne's heart pounded in her ears as she stared into those intense emerald eyes, her breath catching in her throat as he stared at her wordlessly, the distance seemed to diminish even more, to almost nothing.

"We're ready to transmit, sir!" Minion's sudden yell broke the trance they had both fallen into. They both jumped at the sound of his voice, Roxanne blinking as she wondered what had just happened, while Megamind straightened bolt upright as if he was caught doing something he shouldn't have been. He struck his head against the light hanging low above Roxanne and her chair, the metallic bang of his head on the rim ringing through Evil Lair as he cried out.

"OW! My giant blue head!" He shouted out in pain as the lamb swung out on it's chain, sending the light flying away, casting long shadows about the two of them.

Roxanne couldn't help but smile, even as she winced at his plight, sucking in her breath as she saw the lamp come back at him. "Megamind!" she tried to warn him, but only managed to divert his attention towards her, instead of to the pendulum swinging for its second strike on his azure noggin.

"What?!" he answered with irritation just as she blurted, "lookout!" at exactly the same time the lamp struck his head again.

"OWWWWW!" he cried out again, longer this time as the second blow rang out. Roxanne bit her lip, her expression painted with sympathy for his plight, mixed with amusement at his awkward antics. She tried very hard to suppress her giggles, only partly succeeding.

"Maybe we should just call it a day, huh? You can send me home early and nurse your lumps?" she asked. "I mean, if you can't handle the lamp, you're probably not up to taking on Metro Man..."

Megamind spun around to glare at her as he reached out and grabbed the swinging lamp, cutting short its third try for his skull. The blue man scowled at her, but deep down he found himself unable to stay angry as she smiled at him so sweetly.

Of course, he wasn't about to close down now, or let her see the way her smile melted his anger away. He frowned at her.

"Oh, you'd like that, wouldn't you?" he asked bitterly.

"Yeah, actually I would," she started to answer with a flat tone, but he talked over her.

"Sadly for you, evil has only disregard for the desires of its victims," he continued in a lofty tone.

"I'd noticed the disregard," she butted in, now sounding truly annoyed and adding, "but evil? Come on, Megamind, you don't even come close." His rants about being evil always put her in a bad mood.

Crossing his arms, he huffed at her indignantly, "I'll have you know I'm very evil!"

"Puhleeze!" she barked back in a bitterly sardonic voice.

"I'm the super villain for an entire city!" he proudly proclaimed, lifting his chin to look down his nose at her.

"Nobody else in the city claims to be a villain," she answered drolly, meeting his gaze, "you kinda got the position by default."

"I leave the population quaking in terror!", he rebutted emphatically.

"Because your inventions tend to blow up when they're not supposed to!" she shot back quickly.

"I have 73 life sentences!" he declared smugly.

"For kidnapping me, attempted murder against Metroman, who's invulnerable by the way, theft, and property damage with wanton destruction." She snapped back. "No charges of murder, manslaughter, or anything like that..."

"I've created monstrosities of evil that are abominations of science and nature!" he cried desperately, his expression looking desperate as his voice growing louder. He gesticulated wildly to make his point as he realized that he was losing to her wit yet again.

"So what?! They've never actually hurt anybody! Neither have you!" she shot back impatiently, blurting the words out in frustration, realizing too late it was a foolish rebuke. Of course he'd hurt people. He must have. He was the villain.

She paused, waiting for his reply that would shut her down.

But Megamind froze at her charge, shocked to silence. Roxanne hesitated, then blinked in surprise as her own hasty words sunk in, her brow furrowing as the silence grew.

Tilting her head slightly, she watched him as she waited for his rebuttal, for the bold claim of all those he had hurt or killed. She was greeted with only silence as he looked at her uncomfortably.

"You never have really tried to hurt anyone, have you?" she asked slowly, with a dawning realization. Megamind raised a finger and was about to say something, when she quickly added, "besides Metroman!" He froze, swallowed, then dropped his hand and slowly shook his head, looking ashamed, trapped.

Lifting an eyebrow as the enormity of it washed over her, she continued slowly as the pieces started to fall into place, "You've never even really tried hurt me, have you? Through all these years of kidnapping...?" He tried to answer, but only managed to silently work his jaw a few times. She watched him intently, as he stood before her, defenseless.

Her stare grew more intense as the idea starting to take root in her mind, the very concept shocking her to the core.

In spite of all his machines that he'd threatened her with, Roxanne had noticed in the back of her mind that they more seemed like props for show than real weapons with intent to do her harm. More than once, in fact, Metroman hadn't quite managed to get to her in time and the evil gadget in question had always misfired or malfunctioned at the last possible moment, failing to harm her.

Slowly it all started to fall into place. For years, she'd watched all his schemes that were doomed from the start. For years, she'd rolled her eyes at all of his shows of villainy that always seemed too flashy, too showy, with no real substance or intent behind them. For years he'd kidnapped her again, and again, but never hurt a hair on her head, not even once. It could only mean one thing.

Megamind was faking it.

He opened his mouth to speak, but before the first sound could come out of his mouth, a piercing, metallic whine began to fill the room. It was a small yet piercing noise at first, but it quickly grew bigger and louder.

The spell between Roxanne and Megamind was broken and the two looked at each other with surprise. Angry disappointment flooded her at the timing, but it was mixed with a feeling of dread at the strange noise which was growing louder. It reminded her of an aircraft diving to earth.

"Megamind..." she began apprehensively, watching his confused expression with increasing alarm. "What are you up to this time?" The question was asked loudly to be heard over the noise as began to overwhelm, her voice laced with worry as the first trembles of fear started to creep into her.

The sound quickly crescendoed to the point of becoming painful.

The look of confusion and fear that she saw on his face filled her with abject terror as he answered simply, with a frightened voice, "That's not me."

Suddenly their world erupted with the deafening roar of an explosion that shook the very foundations of the building, knocking Megamind and Minion off their feet and tipping Roxanne's chair over backwards, sending her crashing down. She screamed as she fell while machinery and furniture toppled about them. The woman cried out in pain as the back of her head bounced on the concrete floor. The lights sparked out, leaving the room pitch black save for the light from smaller explosions inside Evil Lair, sparks flying in the darkness.

Roxanne started to lose consciousness from the blow to her head. As awareness slowly left her, she heard Megamind shouting something, and Minion's voice answering.

The fear she heard in their voices gripped her heart with icey fingers.

Then her world went black.


	2. Chapter 2

"Roxanne?"

The sound of her name cut through the fog like a knife, but the groggy feeling started to pull her back down again.

"Roxanne, are you alright?"

There was concern in the familiar voice, and fear too. Whose voice was that? She struggled to remember through the haze. It was someone important to her...

"Roxanne, please, wake up..."

Urgency in the voice now. Fingers upon her cheek. She moaned at the touch, reaching up and covering the hand with hers as she smiled slightly.

For some reason it seemed strange to her that her hands were free, but she couldn't remember why. Her brow furrowed at this and she struggled to open her eyes, her brain having difficulty making sense of what was going on. As her eyes slowly and haltingly opened, she saw a large, blue, bald head hovering over hers, its azure surface illuminated only by red emergency lighting. Emerald eyes stared down at her with worry. The sight warmed her inside and she smiled all the more at him, unthinkingly pressing his hand to her cheek.

The wide smile she saw in return melted her heart. "Are you alright?" he asked nervously.

"I think so," she managed to answer softly in a hoarse voice as the world slowly came back to her. She looked into those brilliant eyes as he stared at her, his face a portrait of relief at her answer. A feeling of contentment spread over her body, in spite of the pain she felt in her head.

The pain. It hit hard, suddenly, bringing everything back. She'd hit her head. Because of the explosion. Which had happened while Megamind had kidnapped of her. Again.

Suddenly everything came rushing back and she realized what she was doing. Her serial kidnapper, the city's supervillain, was touching...no, caressing, her face and she was holding his hand there while staring tenderly into his gaze. Her eyes flew wide open in shock and she stiffened, staring up at him apprehensively. Her hand upon his froze.

The blissful look on Megamind's face fled in the space of a heartbeat when he saw her sudden show of surprise and discomfort. His eyes opened just as wide, his face painted with mortification. He quickly withdrew his hand and sat up, blushing from embarrassment. He looked away from her, unable to meet her gaze now.

As his hand left her cheek, part of her cried out at the loss, and she almost grabbed his hand to stop him from taking it away. This shocked her and she bitterly stopped herself from following through on the impulse, chiding herself for being ridiculous. She must have hit her head pretty hard.

Full awareness of their surroundings then hit her like a ton of bricks as her senses took in the rest of the room. She heard several different electronic alarms buzzing over and over as various machines sparked and hissed from the damage they had sustained. Minion's voice was off in the distance, apparently giving orders to brainbots, whom she also heard, their incessant bowging adding to the noise and general calamity. The clamor only made her head throb all the more.

It was then that Roxanne suddenly realized that Megamind was still touching her. Well, sort of. She noticed his other arm stretching down to the other side of her head, but where his hand should have been was cold, not warm. She felt cold on her bruised head. Furrowing her brow, she reached up and touched the ice pack that he was holding to her head, touching his hand that held it there.

"The blast knocked your chair over, you hit your head pretty hard," he explained cautiously, apologetically, as his eyes were drawn back down to hers when she inadvertently touched him. He slowly withdrew his hand while she gingerly took control of the ice bag. Again, she ached at his withdraw, but said nothing. As their hands touched during the transition, her heart hitched. Out of fear of the explosion, she told herself, becoming increasingly confused and annoyed with her own self's repeated betrayal, its serial longing for this man's touch.

Maybe he wasn't as bad as he wanted people to believe, but that didn't mean she felt anything for him.

It absolutely did not, she assured herself.

"What happened?" she asked, her voice still hoarse. The dust and smoke that filled the room caused her to cough and blink a few times. She tried to sit up but failed miserably, the rest of her body not answering her commands just yet. Seeing her struggle, Megamind instinctively reached down to help her sit up, her earlier apparent revulsion to his touch either already forgotten or willingly ignored. Roxanne really didn't care which. She was glad he did. It was because she needed the help, of course.

Not because she liked of the feel of his hands on her back and on her arm.

As he helped her up, the world spun around her, and she gripped his one arm firmly to help keep herself upright. His grip on her tightened instinctively and she realized he was completely supporting her. She looked down at her green, knee-length dress, noting in the back of her mind the covering of dust and debris that resulted from the explosion. She wondered if the building was still structurally sound.

"Something big fell from the sky and crashed a few blocks away, a meteor or something," Megamind answered, his voice laced with serious concern as he watched her with even more worry upon seeing her falter. "Our camera system went down with everything else, so we can't see what's out there. Minion is sending out a brainbot patrol to check it out."

"You untied me," Roxanne suddenly observed, looking up at him with a furrowed brow. Megamind blinked at her words, surprised by her unexpected change of topic.

"You're hurt," he answered simply and incredulously, shrugging as if the answer were blindingly obvious.

They both paused, suddenly finding themselves staring into each others eyes again. Neither seemed to be able to speak.

"Thank you," she replied quietly, her gaze still trapped in his.

He stared at her dumbly, overwhelmed by her showing gratitude to him, of all people.

"Y...you're welcome," he finally stammered in answer, just as softly, neither of them noticing that the distance between them was shrinking, as before.

Suddenly the lights flickered on and computers whirred to life as power was restored, the change immediately followed by a series of brainbot bowgs. Minion's voice rang out. "Sir, the brainbots are closing in, we're about to get video feed of the blast site!"

"Just a minute," Megamind answered with an irate voice as he and Roxanne continued to stare into each other's eyes, but stopped moving closer. She swallowed while staring back at him. Neither of them noticed their faster pulses, nor the way their breathing had quickened.

"You...you should..." Roxanne began in a faltering, cracked voice that trailed off. She cleared her throat awkwardly, but kept her eyes on his.

"Yeah..." he answered with an equally regretful tone, sighing.

He stood to go, unconsciously sliding his hand that was behind her over her back. Roxanne sucked in her breath at the feel of his touch, half closing her eyes. In her current state she couldn't stop herself from grabbing his blue palm as it moved past her line of sight. When had he taken off his gloves, she wondered?

The blue alien stopped abruptly as she grabbed his hand, instantly turning to look back at her as she still sat on the floor.

"T-thank you for untying me," she said hesitantly after a moment of silence. She then flushed in embarrassment as she suddenly realized she'd already thanked him for untying her."...and...f-for the ice pack, I mean," she quickly clarified.

Blue fingers closed around her hand, and a smile lit up his face at her second, more awkward show of appreciation. His smile was brightly reflected in his emerald eyes. Roxanne found herself unable to resist the urge to smile back at him just as warmly, in spite of the pain and her self-consciousness. She silently marvelled at the feel of his bare hand in hers, the sight of their entwined blue and pink skin prominent in her peripheral vision as she stared up into those amazingly green eyes.

"You're very, very welcome," he answered as before, with a serious tone. His hand lingered in hers, squeezing ever so slightly as his thumb rubbed the back of her hand. Her heart raced as they stared at each other and she found herself squeezing back.

"Sirrr," Minion's voice called out with trepidation. "You should really come and look at this..."

A heavy sigh and Megamind daringly squeezed her hand more pronouncedly, winking at her to their mutual surprise. She lifted her eyebrows slightly in shock. Suddenly realizing what he'd done, his eyes flew wide as he abruptly withdrew his hand and turned away, walking briskly over to where Minion stood at a bank of monitors. His gait confessed loudly his own turn of awkward embarrassment.

In spite of herself and their situation, Roxanne giggled at both his spontaneous show of confident affection and the immediate reversion back to his awkward self. She was unable to keep a silly grin off of her face as she watched him from her vantage point halfway across the room.

Shifting her position slightly and moving the ice bag to a better spot on her head, she observed the two aliens. When Megamind had just about reached where Minion stood, he chanced to glance back over his shoulder, his expression a portrait of uncertainty. Roxanne smiled sweetly at him as his gaze found hers, confident blue eyes reflecting the smile she wore upon her lips. Hesitant emerald eyes looked back at her, a cautious smile starting to bloom at the sight they beheld.

They both lingered there for a moment before Minion's voice again broke the moment. "Sir...?" he asked worriedly, more insistently, the fish staring unblinkingly at the monitor before the two aliens. Roxanne couldn't see what was on the display. Minion's large robotic guerilla body completely blocked her view.

Roxanne thought she saw Megamind's chest heave with a frustrated sigh as he tore his gaze away from hers, turning instead to look at the monitor that so captivated his piscean servant.

"What in the...?" the blue man intoned with a loud, shocked voice, his whole demeanor changing to one of apprehension and...fear?

The sudden change filled Roxanne with a certain dread and she stood, or at least tried to stand, the room spinning again at her sudden motion. Grabbing the toppled chair next to her for support, she floundered into a kneeling position, not having managed to rise higher than that. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath to steady herself.

After a moment the world righted itself and with a determined expression she stood fully and walked over to where the two aliens stood gaping at the monitor. Her steps were faltering at first, but she managed to brush past the dizziness she'd first felt and walked quickly over.

Coming to stand beside Megamind, Roxanne glanced at his face, worried at the gaping expression she saw there. Her brows knitted together in concern before turning her gaze to the monitor that inspired such a stunned reaction from her kidnapper. She gasped at the sight, her jaw falling slack.

"What is that?" Roxanne asked breathlessly.

"I...I don't know," Megamind answered humbly.


	3. Chapter 3

Megamind, Roxanne, and Minion stared in disbelief at the monitor in front of them. On the screen was a video feed from the brainbot patrol that had been sent to scout out what caused the earth-shattering explosion.

The high-definition video transmission showed a crater where a warehouse had once stood, just a few blocks away from where the Evil Lair was nestled in the Industrial Park of the city. In the center of the crater was a very tall, half-buried, cigar shaped, black metal object. Or, more accurately, a metal tower. The part of object that was not buried rose a good ten stories into the sky above the ground, looming above the various low-lying warehouses and factories. Its obsidian surface glinted in the rays of the late afternoon light, sometimes catching the sun's rays with a glaring effect.

Several surrounding buildings had been wholly or partially destroyed by the impact. Because of those levelled structures and a couple of parking lots beyond them, Megmind realized from the visuals the Brainbot was sending that there was a clear line of sight from Evil Lair to the obelisk.

"That's not yours?" Roxanne asked hesitantly after a few moments of tense silence, adjusting the bag of ice on her head. She prayed that it was, fear gripping her.

"No," Megamind answered, unable to tear his eyes away from the display.

The surface of the tower was contoured but not decorated, with ridges and bumps of varying sizes protruding from it at seemingly random places. There were no windows that they could see from their vantage point.

Another two monitors flickered to life with alterative views from different angles as additional brainbots reached positions further out from the first. Each monitor showed more of the same, endless stretches of smooth, black, metallic surface.

As the two aliens and the reporter stared at the displays in shock, studying the mysterious object, a fourth monitor lit up as one brainbot started to slowly ascend and circle the object, providing a closer view of the object. There was no sign of seam or rivet in the surface, the entire object appeared to be wrapped in a contiguous metal skin. Here and there lights blinked, but otherwise the seemingly random and contoured features of the surface were barren, without any adornment, marking, or decoration.

"What is it?" Roxanne breathed softly as before.

"I...I don't know," he answered for the second time with frustration. He hated not knowing, and despised having to admit it. The unfamiliar feeling of ignorance left him feeling insecure and uncertain.

Suddenly one of the brainbot's video feeds of the onyx tower was disrupted by a flash of white. The three jumped as one, gasping in shock.

The vision of Metro Man in all his costumed glory greeted them.

"Megamind, what dastardly plan has your twisted mind concocted this time?" the hero asked the brainbot with a sour frown, knowing that it would relay his words to Megamind. His voice boomed with a sharp and scolding tone.

Megamind frowned as he glanced at Roxanne, sharing a concerned glance with her. He stepped forward to grip a microphone arcing out of the needlessly complex control panel, pushing its red button that lit upon contact.

"That's not mine," the blue villain answered with a nervous voice, the brainbot on the other side producing his voice on a speaker hidden within it.

Metro Man looked shocked by his life-long adversary refuting credit for what the muscle-bound man had thought was to be the blue villain's opus. For the first time, the invulnerable man was apprehensive. If this monstrosity wasn't Megamind's then...what was it?

Both in the lair and at the site, silence followed Megamind's denial of responsibility for this massive artifact. Roxanne hugged herself with her one free arm, as she held the ice bag to her wounded head with the other. A feeling of foreboding filled her as the deathly quiet stretched out. The empty feeling chilled her to the bone as all of them were clearly at a loss.

The stillness was shattered when a series of loud clanging sounds issued from the obsidian tower. Metro Man spun about, his cape and tassels fluttering as he put his back to the brainbot to face the tall structure in a ready stance.

Back inside Evil Lair, the displays showed the brainbot's camera angles moving around wildly as the cyborgs searched the massive structure for any sign of change or the source of the sound.

Suddenly, the clanging sounds changed in pitch and tone as three protrusions, equidistant around the diameter of the object, began to extend from the body at a point about two stories above ground level, eight below its peak. Because of the depth crater, the extensions were a good five stories above the very bottom of the bowl the object had created with its impact.

The two villains, the reporter, and the hero watched in awe as the extensions grew steadily, the mechanical grinding noise filling the air at both the site and in the lair as the brainbots continued to transmit their feeds. All four of the observers' faces were pictures of awe as they watched, waiting to see what would happen next.

Metro Man tensed himself, setting his jaw as he watched this unknown thing put forth the mysterious arms. He sensed that it was unfriendly, and readied himself for anything.

The three in Evil Lair watched the scene unfold on the display screens. Minion looked on with wide eyes, his mouth agape as the strange arms extended outward from the dark tower.

Megamind studied the displays intently as the object's arms reached their full extent. He furrowed his brow when the lengths, which had been perpendicular to the body of the tower, began to lower slowly, bringing the extended ends down towards the rim of the crater below. The blue alien's eyes took in everything, his curiosity and natural inclination to analyze taking over as his brain desperately tried to figure out what the device was doing. He frowned slightly as a dawning realization began to grow on him.

Roxanne watched with a steady scowl, fear welling up in her gut. She put the ice bag down on the console and hugged herself, suddenly feeling too chilled to keep using it, in spite of the throbbing lump on her head. A sense of foreboding washed over her, unpleasantly helping distract her from her wound.

"I don't like this," she said with worry, causing Megamind and Minion to glance over at her. She cast a gaze at the two aliens, her eyes filled with apprehension. The expressions she saw on their faces showed her they shared her worries, leaving her even more unsettled.

Glancing back at the display, the trio watched the arms touch down on the rim of the crater. One of the three lengths touched down fairly near to Metro Man, the hero having watched warily as as the extension descended. He clenched his fists at the ready when it came to rest on the ground. The metallic grinding that had accompanied the arms' descent stopped with a loud clang when they came to their final position. Then, there was again silence.

The air at the site became heavy with the stillness that followed. Metro Man watched the tower silently, waiting to see what would follow.

Evil Lair was quiet enough that they could have heard a pin drop, leaving the dark and cavernous building with an overwhelming feeling of eerie emptiness. Three of the four displays were fixed upon the points of the tower where the three protrusions extended from. Each display showed only the dark, motionless surface of the tower above the three arms.

One of the displays suddenly brightened as a door opened in the surface at the point where the arm met the body, bright light shining out from within the fourth brainbot turned its camera back from the tower to show Metro Man as he stepped forward towards the base of the sloping arm, looking up at the opening with concern.

All watched with anticipation as the bright light darkened with the silhouette of a humanoid figure stepping into the opening. With no point of reference, it was impossible to tell how tall the door or the figure was. The entity carried a staff in its one hand, pausing at the exit from vessel.

At the sight of the figure, Metroman started to walk towards the ramp that lead to the entrance.

Feeling a sense of panic well up, Roxanne impulsively stepped forward and grabbed the microphone that Megamind had used, surprising the blue alien. Pushing down the button, she spoke into it, "Be careful, Wayne..." She failed to see Megamind's scowl as he misinterpreted her warning to be that of a girlfriend showing concern for her beau.

Nothing could be further from the truth, of course. Unbeknownst to the blue alien, Roxanne was not the superhero's girlfriend, nor had she been, nor did she ever intend to be. Still, the hero was a dear friend to her, and she was very worried about what this newest alien was and what threat it likely posed.

Metroman looked back over his shoulder in surprise when he heard the woman's familiar voice coming out of the brainbot's speaker. "Roxanne?!" he asked, his brow furrowed. "What are you doing there with Megamind?"

"I was kidnapped, what do you think?" she replied with a slight grin, trading an amused glance with Megamind in spite of the circumstances. The blue alien smirked back at her, their eyes meeting once more.

Stepping forward, Megamind spoke into the microphone. "I was getting ready to call you out when this in-tehrloop-ar landed," he explained to the befuddled superhero, who furrowed his brow as Megamind mangled the word interloper. Megamind glanced over at the one monitor that showed the open door, noticing that the entity in question had emerged and started to walk down the ramp. "We can talk about that later...it looks like our visitor wants to come and see you..."

Metroman frowned as he turned back to witness the alien striding down the long ramp, the staff tapping with every other step.

"Do you know anything about this fellow and his ship?" The gleaming white hero asked over his shoulder as he stayed near the base of the ramp.

"No," Megamind immediately answered, watching intently as the stranger came into view as it moved far enough from the bright light which had masked the creature in silhouette. The figure was wrapped in a brown hooded cloak, its hands covered in brown gloves. The cowl completely covered its head, nothing could be seen within. The staff was black, slightly taller than the creature itself, and apparently made of the same material that coated the surface of the ship he had just exited. The top of the staff was adorned with a red crystal that seemed to glow dully.

"We can see it on the brainbot's cameras," Megamind said further, the other 2 brainbots turning their cameras on the humanoid as it strode down the lamp. "But we can't make out much...the creature's clothing covers it completely. Except for the gem on top, the staff is plain, maybe made of metal...possibly the same as covers the tower."

Minion and Roxanne exchanged glances as they watched Megamind voluntarily offer up assistance to Metroman, his sworn rival. The fish shrugged, but smiled slightly with a hopeful gaze that was reflected in the eyes of the woman standing next to him.

"Think it's friendly?" Metroman asked over his shoulder as the stranger reached the halfway point down the ramp.

"Not likely," Megamind answered, his gaze fixed on the monitors, "This wasn't the most polite of ways for him to introduce himself if the intentions were not hostile, but we shouldn't rule it out until we're certain. " He glanced back over his shoulder at Minion and Roxanne, both of whom were smiling beatifically at him. Their expressions surprised him.

"What?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. His reaction wiped the smile off Minion's face, but only made it grow on Roxanne's

"Nothing," she answered with a mischievous grin, in spite of everything. "It's just good to see you boys helping each other, instead of fighting."

Megamind blinked at the realization brought by her words."I, well...that is..." he stammered and hedged, only causing Roxanne to grin even more. Finally, he blurted out, "if this is a new villain, I can't have him trying to take over my turf." He smiled wickedly at the woman, clearly proud of his answer. "What more villainous of a way to handle it than to let the hero do all the work for me?"

Roxanne lifted an eyebrow at the blue alien, clearly not buying a word of it.

"Uhuh," she answered simply, her cocked eyebrow defying his explanation as she crossed her arms. Megamind stared back at her, attempting his best poker face, but it faltered more by the second. When her lips curled up into a bigger smirk yet, he scowled and turned back to the monitors, muttering, "insufferable woman..." She giggled behind his back, but the amusement faded quickly as she looked back at the displays.

The three returned their attention back to the monitors, watching as the alien continued its descent. Metroman walked forward as the strange alien reached the bottom of the ramp. The stranger stopped just before the ground upon which the slope's base rested, and the hero stopped a good ten to fifteen feet from there. At this distance, it appeared to be no taller than Metroman, if not shorter.

"Greetings, visitor!" Metroman began with a booming voice, standing in one of his classic hero poses, with his feet slightly apart, his fists on his hips, and a dazzling smile plastered on his face. "From your ship I can see you've come quite the distance to arrive at our fair planet! What brings you all this way?"

The stranger stood silently for the space of several moments, the air growing thick with tension. Metroman stared at the alien, his smile holding steady though the look in his eyes started to harden as he grew to expect the worst.

Then it spoke.

"This world is no longer your own," it told him coldly with an inhuman voice that sounded somewhere between organic and electronic. "Submit, or be destroyed."

Back in the lair, the three shared deeply worried glances at this, then looked back at the display.

"Sorry, friend," Metroman answered in the same cheesy voice, but this time with a serious edge to it. "I'm afraid that just won't work for us. It's a shame you came all this way just to be disappointed, but it'd probably be best for everyone if you just packed up that nice little ship of yours and headed back to where you came from. No harm, no foul, if you do so...right now.

The laughter that answered his words echoed through the open air, sending a chill down the spine of any who listened.

"You were warned," the alien stated simply. Moving quickly, it lowered the staff head, leveling it at Metroman. A red beam of energy shot out to strike the invulnerable man, sending him hurtling backwards at a high speed, to the shock of the three watching the video feeds from the brainbots.

Megamind furrowed his brow at the sight of it, calculating almost instantly the endpoint of the hero's trajectory. He turned around just in time to watch the far wall erupt with Metroman, the bricks and mortar slowing his velocity so that the hero fell to the floor, tumbling a few times. Roxanne shrieked in shock at the sound as she spun around to look with wide eyes, not having realized just how close the ship was to The Evil Lair. Minion turned in his dome and glanced back at Metroman with raised eyebrows, watching him for a few moments before he glanced back at the monitors with a worried eye.

Metroman tumbled into a crouched position, then slowly stood as he dusted himself off. "Crabnuggets!" he muttered to himself, "That sure packed a punch."

After taking a moment to get his bearings, he glanced about and furrowed his brow. Turning around, he saw the three standing by the control panel and its displays of the ship. For a few moments, they all just looked at him and he at them.

"Hi there," he said after a moment of silence, smiling at them as he put his fists on his hips, lifting an eyebrow. Fixing his gaze on Megamind, he smirked. "So this is where your hideout's been all these years, huh?"

The blue alien glowered at his adversary, frowning. Evil Lair had been his sanctuary for over two decades, the one hidden and secret place that he could find refuge from a world that hated him. Metroman finding it was not only a serious problem, but also left Megamind feeling somewhat violated.

"Brilliant deduction, hero," Megamind answered bitterly, his voice filled with sarcasm. "It only took two decahds and a second villain for you to blunder into it!"

"Which only shows how good will always triumphs in the end, even if its path is not the most direct," Metroman answered haughtily, unable to resist his reflex to respond to Megamind's jabs.

"But the GPS of Evil will lead Good astray so that it never finds its final destination!" Megamind snapped back being equally compelled to reply, though his voice was somewhat acid, rather than the usual undertone of suppressed glee at the back and forth.

Roxanne rolled her eyes and groaned as the two of them dove into their usual round of banter, in spite of what they faced.

"Boys, please!" she cut them off with an exasperated tone before Metroman could rebut. "I really don't think this is the time!"

"You're right, Roxie!" Metroman said, spinning around, ready to fly back to the alien that had sent him hurling here in the first place. "Please excuse me while I go take out the trash!"

During that brief exchange, Minion had kept a keen eye on the brainbots' video feed of the crash site. Just after the red beam had blasted Metroman into the Evil Lair, the fish had seen something else emerge from the black tower. It was much larger and appeared to be running on all fours. It raced down the ramp, quickly reaching the unknown alien. The humanoid at the end of the ramp leapt onto its back when the creature reached it, and the two of them then charged the distance towards the same far wall that Metroman had been hurled through.

"Actually, they're coming to us," Minion said.

Just then, the rider and beast leapt through the hole, landing half the distance between the wall and where Metroman stood.

The creature that the humanoid alien rode upon was the size of a large bear but with longer limbs, an equally long neck, completely covered with shaggy white hair, and a lengthy tail. It's paws looked half like hands, having opposable thumbs and sharp talons. Its large head had a long snout that was lined with razor-sharp teeth.

The humanoid rode the creature bare back. The brown cowl still covered the humanoid's head, leaving its appearance a complete mystery. Its gloved hand still clenched the black staff with the red gem atop of it.

The two looked rather formidable, Megamind had to admit to himself as he drew his de-gun. He noticed that the stone on the end of the staff was glowing brightly now. Instinctively, unthinkingly, the blue alien stepped forward and put himself between Roxanne and the enemy. She blinked in shock at this show of protectiveness on the part of Megamind, even as she was recovering from the fright of seeing this strange new pair of aliens leap into the Evil Lair.

"Minion, code: defend Evil Lair!" Megamind ordered as he released the clasp of his cape and tossed it to the side. Minion had already taken a couple of steps to pick up a large looking rifle from a nearby table.

"Right, sir!" He cheerfully answered as he powered up the weapon with the throw of a switch, an electronic hum following his action.

"No need, boys, I've got this," Metroman answered with a cocky voice, soaring into the air and diving back down at the alien, swinging his fist at the rider.

To everyone's surprise, the rider proved far more nimble than expected. It dove off of its mount as Metroman reached it, dodging the fist that would have likely sent him back hurtling out of the lair. As it twisted away from the hero's punch, it spun round to bring the tip of its staff swinging. The red tip struck Metroman with minimal force, but the red gem flashed brightly upon contact. The hero cried out in pain at the impact, dropping suddenly to the ground as the strange alien tumbled in a controlled roll and spun to its feet

"Fuck!" Metroman cried out roughly. "That hurt!"

The three deeper inside the massive room looked on with stunned expressions, as much by his foul language as his claim of being hurt. Never had Metroman experienced pain that any of them could remember. For that matter, he'd never cursed a day in his life.

The hero stood up with some difficulty, turning to face the new alien and its vicious looking mount, which growled at him. Metroman frowned and set his jaw, jumping to take to the air...

...only to fall back to the ground, landing on his face.

Megamind, Minion, and Roxanne gasped in shock at what they saw, the three of them turning to look at the mysterious alien as its laughter filled the room. They watched in dawning terror as it held its staff with both hands and rose from the ground, flying as easily as the hero used to be able to.

"Oh no," Roxanne breathed as they all realized what had happened.

The new alien had stolen Metroman's power of flight.


	4. Chapter 4

"NOT GOOD!" Megamind cried, taking aim with his de-gun and firing a few rounds at the alien as Metroman lifted himself from face-down on the floor to a kneeling position and looked up at his foe. Megamind's shots were easily avoided by the flying creature, which then dove towards Metroman, swinging its staff as it did.

"Stay away from the staff!" Roxanne shouted.

"Ya think?!" the hero barked back in an uncharacteristically bitter and sarcastic voice as he rolled out of the way. The red tip of the rod struck the ground where he had been crouching, crimson sparks flying with a loud crackling sound. The now flightless glaupunk rolled onto his back as the alien soared up again, turning around in mid-air, readying for another dive. Metro Man let loose a blast of his laser vision and struck the creature dead in the chest, causing it to cry out as the rays set its robes ablaze.

While the hero and the strange alien battled, the large animal it had ridden into the building charged Megamind, Minion, and Roxanne, huffing and snarling as it rushed at them. Minion threw a switch on the large rifle he had hefted, causing it light up and hum even more loudly. The fish pulled the trigger to fire a loud spray of energy bolts. The blasts flying from its muzzle proved impossible for the large creature to dodge and several shots found their mark. The creature cried out in pain as white energy crackled around it. The shots didn't even slow it down, however, and the monster closed the distance at an alarming speed, snarling in pain and fury.

The beast loomed in Megamind's peripheral vision, pulling his attention away from the flying alien. The blue villain's eyes flew wide as the monster took a swing at the three with its massive, taloned paw. Roughly grabbing Roxanne by the shoulders, Megamind pushed her bodily out of the way as he half dove, half ran from the monster. Roxanne shrieked as he did, terrified by the closeness of the knife-like talons as they just missed the both of them. Her heart pounded in terror as she felt the talons breeze past her face.

Minion stood rooted to the spot, continuing to blast the large, rapid-fire weapon at the beast, his shots finally seeming to take their toll on the creature as he fired an endless stream of bursts at point blank range. The creature reared up as it cried out in pain and swung its other arm, successfully catching the rifle, destroying the weapon, its rending claws loosing a crackling arc of electricity as circuitry was torn to shreds.

Megamind jumped back up as soon as he and Roxanne had dodged the claws, pulling her up with him by her arms and dragging her along with him. He turned around as soon as he had gotten the reporter at least a few yards away, watching as Minion discarded the ruined rifle. His best friend reached up and grabbed each of the monster's paws as it lashed out again. The fish grappled with the large beast, his large, 7-foot robotic body seeming a fair match for the snarling, wounded 12-foot creature.

Smoke wafted from the animal's wounded midsection, the smell of burnt flesh filling Evil Lair as the monstrosity seemed driven to insane strength by its wounds. Large robotic hands grabbed massive paws as Minion struggled to hold it at bay, jaws snapping at the clear dome. The fish inside seemed small and insignificant, his eyes wide in shock, though set with a determined look to them. Servos and hydraulics of the robotic body protested noisily at the strain as the teeth came dangerously close to the blue bowl.

Megamind took aim from his vantage point at the monster with his de-gun, scowling as he saw the danger his friend was in. Before he could fire, he grunted as Roxanne knocked him to the floor, a red blast of energy blowing a hole in the concrete floor where he had been standing a moment ago.

"Thanks," he breathed as he looked up into her blue eyes when they tumbled to a stop, stunned by what had just happened and by the feel of her body almost completely pressed atop of his. She swallowed as she looked shakily into his emerald gaze.

Roxanne opened her mouth to say something, but then Megamind saw the creature above from his vantage point as it aimed again for them. Grabbing her shoulders he roughly heaved her body and rolled them both several feet away as another ruby blast cratered the ground where they had been.

Ending up atop of him again, she stared at him in shock for a moment. She then leapt to her feet, grabbed his wrists roughly, and pulled him up with her. As he got his footing, she grabbed his hand in hers, pulling the blue man away while the air crackled with yet another blast of crimson energy, the blast scorching the third spot where they had been, just a moment before.

Megamind gripped Roxanne's hand tightly as she pulled him with her at a full run, her eyes darting about the lair in search of some kind of shelter. He glanced over his shoulder and saw their airborne foe, its robes still alight upon its body as it chased them, loosing more blasts from its staff. The blue alien fired back wildly with his de-gun as they ran, taking shot after shot at their airborne pursuer, who easily dodged the erratic bolts while it let loose a relentless string of blasts, attempting to hit them or herd them to where it could deliver the coup de gras.

While Megamind and Roxanne were dodging the shots from the flying alien, Metroman had dashed over at super speed to help Minion fight the strange mount.

The fish wrestled with the furry beast, then blinked in surprise when the creature was suddenly lifted in the air and pulled away from him. He hurriedly released his grip on its paws as he started to rise with the furry creature, landing back down with a heavy thud. Metroman hefted the snarling beast, lifting it above his head.

The flying alien chased Megamind and Roxanne to a large machine along that same far wall where it and Metroman had entered Evil Lair. The reporter and blue alien darted behind the contraption to take shelter, squeezing between it and the wall. The flying humanoid paused in its flight to hover, taking aim for a more definitive shot.

Megamind and Roxanne crouched together, huddling close to try and provide as small a target as possible. He instinctively wrapped his blue arms around the woman who curled up against him as if it were the most natural thing in the world. In the back of his mind, there was a measure of shock at this, but the adrenaline and fear of their impending doom quickly overwhelmed it. Blasts from the alien started to tear the machine apart, filling their ears with the crackling sound of the energy bolts and the shredding of the metal structure next to them. Figuring on the mass of the device they hid behind and the sound of the blasts' effects, Megamind calculated they had up to 9.7 seconds before their cover was throughly destroyed and they were completely vulnerable.

Suddenly he realized he couldn't just hide here with Roxanne, waiting for the alien to fry them both. He had to lead it away from her, to protect her. Steeling himself, he readied his de-gun as he crouched down with her into a tighter ball, whispering urgently in her ear, "Stay here!"

"WHAT?!" she cried out at his words, looking up at him as an unexpected panic surged within her when she instantly realized what he was doing. She grabbed his wrist as he moved away from her, yanking him back with such force that he thought she could have dislocated his shoulder with just a little more effort.

"NO!" she snarled at him with a fury that surprised him and shocked herself.

Struggling to free himself from her grip, his eyes looked back to lock with hers as his confused emerald gaze was met by furious blue. He opened his mouth to protest when his words were suddenly preempted by a booming voice from across the room.

"Catch!" Metroman yelled out as he threw the beast with one arm like a shot-put, sending its massive body careening towards the floating alien above.

The flying humanoid stopped firing and turned at the sound of Metroman's call, just in time to see its own mount hurtling at it with a very high velocity. The heavy creature smashed into its rider with tremendous force, its trajectory carrying them both out of Evil Lair, loudly punching another hole in that same brick wall from which they and Metroman had first entered.

Megamind and Roxanne heard the sound of something crashing through the wall beside them but were unable to see it from their vantage point, leaving the reporter and blue alien unsure of what just happened. They sat crouched together, Roxanne still holding his arm in a death grip to keep the blue alien from sacrificing himself for her, while a bewildered Megamind looked down at her in wonder as he wrapped his other arm around her knew if the new hole through the brick wall was something coming or going, or if they were simply going to be fried by crimson blasts of energy.

They waited together in tense silence as the seconds ticked by, gripping each other tightly. The only sound was that of their ragged breathing.

"Roxanne?" Metroman's voice called, breaking the silence

"Sir?" Minion's voice immediately followed on the heels of the hero's.

Behind the machine, Megamind and Roxanne didn't move. Neither said anything for a few seconds, their hearts pounding in their ears.

"I guess it's safe out there now," he said hesitantly, his breath ragged.

"Yeah," she agreed, avoiding his gaze as long as she could, until she lost the struggle with herself and looked up into his eyes. The passion laced with confusion that she saw there caught her breath, forcing her to swallow as she looked back, equally lost and confused about what just happened between them.

They both started to slowly rise to their feet. The space between the machine and the wall was tight, forcing them to stay close to one another. The lighting was minimal. Their features were cast in sharp relief from the heavy shadows, though they could see each others' eyes clearly. They remained in an embrace, his one arm still wrapped about her shoulders as when they had been while crouching for fear of their lives, just seconds ago. Roxanne released his other arm slowly, placing her hands on his chest. Without thinking, Megamind slowly wrapped his newly freed arm about her waist.

The emerald gaze searched her nervous blues for the significance of the past few minutes as his massive brain struggled to process the what had happened, now that he had a moment to think. Neither knew what to say.

"Roxie, are you alright?" Metroman asked with more urgency.

"Sir, where are you?" Minion called out right after, equally worried.

Behind the machine, the two still hesitated a second more, neither moving or able to look away.

Finally, Megamind called out, "We're fine!"

His eyes never left Roxanne's. They both lingered a few breaths more, the tension between them thick.

"We should..." he then said reluctantly, his brain screaming at him that the battle was not over and every second they waited was an opportunity lost. At the same time, his mind dizzily tried to absorb everything that had happened between them since the ship fell from the sky, and refused to let him end this moment or release this amazing woman in his arms.

"Yeah," Roxanne agreed, her voice equally hesitant and unsure, her emotions a swirling mess of fear, uncertainty, and confusion at all that was going on around them and between them.

He smiled weakly at her, pulling away but boldly taking her hand in his as he lead her out from behind the machine. She didn't resist. Following him in a daze, after a few steps she impulsively squeezed his hand. Then they stepped out into the relatively brighter light of the lair, both of them instinctively releasing the other when they saw Metroman and Minion turn to look at them.

"Sir, are you alright?" Minion asked, overtop of Metroman's asking Roxanne, "Roxie, are you hurt?"

The two numbly walked forward towards the fish and the hero, their faces blank as they were still reeling from what took place in their hiding spot. Each answered their respective friend with a nod and a mumbled acknowledgement that they were, in fact, unharmed

Minion and Metroman both looked concerned at their state, each worried that their charge was in fact hurt, but too in shock to realize it. Then the hero and fish glanced at the others' charges, blinked, and looked at each other, exchanging suspicious expressions.

Minion pursed his lips, but then glanced back at the displays from the brainbot patrol's video feeds. "Uhh...sir? I think we have a problem."

Sighing as he and Roxanne reached where Minion and Metroman were standing, back in front of the control panel with the video feeds, Megamind answered wearily, "Yes, Minion, I know we have a problem. That creature and his pet are quite the problem, and I don't think they're beat just yet." With that, he flopped down into his executive chair and sighed, rubbing his face once with his hands. He glanced over at Roxanne and was shocked to see her already staring at him. The two wordlessly gazed at each other, desperately trying to read the other but neither succeeding.

"Well, you're right as always, sir..." Minion began slowly as he watched the display, "but, now we have another problem...a lot of them, actually..."

Furrowing her brow at Minion's words, the brunette reporter reluctantly broke her gaze from Megamind and looked to the monitors. She gasped, covering her mouth with her hands.

"Crabnuggets!" Metroman said right after, as he looked.

"What are you talking about, Minion?" Megamind asked with a concerned voice as he watched Roxanne's reaction. He glanced over and frowned. When he saw what was on the monitors, his eyes flew wide and he slowly rose from his chair. "Oh, no."

On the video screens, all three ramps extending from the space craft were half covered by several columns of humanoids marching out steadily from the spacecraft, their synchronized steps beating like a drum that they all kept time to. Each carried a rifle-like weapon of a very futuristic design, and wore identical black uniforms. The columns grew longer out from the space craft as they marched forward with each beat, with no end in sight.

It was an army.

They were being invaded.


	5. Chapter 5

"It's an army," Roxanne breathed in a hushed whisper, fear again welling up within her. She wasn't used to being afraid, having been kidnapped by Megamind for years. The past half hour felt like her whole world was turning upside-down, which, she realized bitterly, it was.

"They're nothing to fear," Metroman stated boldly, lifting his chin as he set his fists upon his hips again, striking one of his countless heroic poses. "The forces of good will triumph today over the armies of evil..."

"Oh _stiff_ it!" Megamind interrupted with an irritated voice, causing Roxanne and Metroman to stare at him in confused shock.

Clearing his throat Minion interjected. "Uhm, It's _stuff it_, sir," he corrected, using air quotes around the words 'stuff it'.

Glancing over at Minion, a bit more annoyed than before, he huffed and looked back at Metro Man. "Yes," he said, as Roxanne couldn't help but softly giggle in spite of everything. "STUFF IT!" Now Metro Man was glaring at the villain. "Are you going to just _fly_ over there and take care of them all for us?"

The hero blanched at the blue alien's blunt reminder of his lost power, his confidence suddenly deflating. Roxanne glared at Megamind, but bit back the rebuke she was about to hurl when she realized he had a point.

Mustering his confidence back up with a determined set to his jaw, Metroman looked back up and countered, "He's finished. I lit that demon on fire and sent him and his beast soaring out of here. I doubt they could have survived that..."

"Uhmmm..." Minion interrupted, sounding nervous. "I think they just might have..."

The other three cried out in shock and disbelief as the fish yet again brought their attention to the video display. The brainbot's video feed now showed the first alien slowly riding its mount out of the crater, where they had apparently crashed after being expelled from Evil Lair. The brown robe had completely burned off of the creature, leaving it fully exposed.

The creature was covered in a reddish-black exoskeleton of some sort. It was very clearly a suit of armor, but had an organic look about it, like an insect's carapace. There was no seam or evidence of how the wearer would remove the suit, giving it the impression it was a part of its being. The arms, legs, and body plates were mostly black, with red fringes that blended into red on the elbows, knees, and other joints. What was most disturbing was the humanoid's face. There was none. Instead, the creature had a smooth, black, reflective plate.

"Kahldis Mecznar," Megamind suddenly blurted out upon seeing the revealed humanoid, his words spoken with a strange accent and filled with a fearful reverence.

Minion gasped while Metroman and Roxanne simultaneously asked, "What?!"

Swallowing, Megamind turned to look at the three, though Roxanne could tell by the look on Minion's face he already knew what the blue alien was about to say. The fear she saw in Megamind's eyes send a cold chill down her spine. "Kahldis Mecznar," he repeated more slowly this time. "That's what my people called this thing and its army." He hesitated, then continued, "there's no literal translation, but 'planet killer' and 'soul stealer' pretty much cover it." In his bowl, Minion nodded nervously. Roxanne looked terrified, while Metroman narrowed his eyes in a suspicious gaze as he listened to Megamind continue.

"These creatures roam the galaxies, praying on planets. Wherever they land, they suck the resources out of the world, take the life out of its people, and leave behind nothing but empty husks." He shivers at the thought of it. "Tales were told of them in my home world as bedtime stories to frighten children..."

"We were a babies when we escaped our planets," Metroman protested, not believing his fellow alien. "How could you possibly know all that?" Roxanne looked at him with wide eyes, not having known that their history went back that far. The hero missed her look. She made a mental note to ask them both about it, later.

on the black the plates and at

Glaring at the glaupunk, Megamind pointed at his oversized skull with a sour frown. "Hello?! Super genius? I remember **everything**, _hero_... " Metroman rolled his eyes, but Megamind turned away from him, not caring to take up the debate. Instead, he watched as the troops neared the ends of the three ramps, their apparent leader having paused at the rim of the crater to watch over their progress.

"We have to get out of here," Megamind said with finality as his eyes darted from monitor to monitor, his massive brain taking in data, analyzing it, and making decisions at lightning speed. "We're too close, we'll never be able to hold against them from here."

"Coward!" Metroman barked at him, causing Megamind to spin back and glare at him again, the hero's words even drawing a scowl from Roxanne. "If we attack them now, before they can establish a foothold, then we can drive them out!"

"They HAVE their foothold, what are you going to do against THAT?!" Megamind asked as he pointed back at the monitors showing the black tower rising one-hundred feet into the empty skyline, its foreboding presence overwhelming everything else.

"I'll rip it out of the ground with my bare hands..." Metroman began to boast.

"Until that _thing_ hits you with its staff again and takes your super strength!" Megamind barked back, exasperated with the hero. The muscle-bound man stopped short, struggling for something to come back with. "Face it, Metro Mahn, for once you're _vulnerable_."

There was a deafening silence as the hero stared at Megamind, at a loss for words.

Roxanne stepped forward, placing a hand on Metroman's arm. "Wayne, please...Megamind's right. We'll lose if we try and fight them here, now, like this..."

Megamind had frowned as Roxanne approached and touched the hero, but then his expression lightened somewhat as she agreed with him.

Metroman's expression was one of conflict as he struggled with the concept of running. "You go," he said. "I'll stay and fight them..."

"NO," Megamind said sternly. His tone brooked no argument. Metroman turned to glare at him as Roxanne glanced over with a confused expression. The hero opened his mouth to argue, but the blue alien cut him off. "If he's stolen one of your powers, he can steal more. How many hits from his staff until we're facing a super being with all of your powers and abilities, while you're completely helpless?"

Roxanne gulped at the scenario Megamind painted, looking up to Wayne with hopeful eyes. He clenched his jaw in frustration. He'd never run from a fight in his life, having never had reason to fear anybody. But hhe couldn't argue with the logic, and knew that if Roxanne agreed with Megamind, there was no chance to change anybody's mind.

As much as he wanted to simply take the fight to the enemy on his own, he knew he couldn't, not without his power of flight and not when the enemy could possibly take more or all of his powers.

Reluctantly, the hero nodded, dropping his head in shame.

Nodding, Megamind turned to his henchfish. "Minion, code: Escape Plan Omega."

The fish bobbed in his dome in acknowledgement, answering with a solemn voice, "You got it, boss." With that Megamind drew his de-gun and tossed it to his lackey, who caught it handily and immediately started to rapidly fire the dehydration beam at everything around them. The high frequency fire was executed with such accuracy and precision that Roxanne guessed his robotic body was running on automatic now, probably by a program that Megamind had set in advance.

Blue cubes dropped all around them as machines, furniture, and even fixtures were dehydrated. The blue villain unclasped his cloak and removed it, tossing it into his chair just before Minion dehydrated that, too. The collapsing inventory of Evil Lair clattered to the ground like a small hailstorm as Megamind walked over to Roxanne. Brainbots flew this way and that, picking up the cubes as they fell or landed, loading them into compartments in their undercarriages.

Holding out a key to the brunette, Megamind asked,"My dear, if I could trouble you to please go get the invisible car started?" He gestured behind her to another section of the lair. "I'd do it myself, but my time is probably better spent providing our last line of defense. It takes sixteen point three five minutes to fully extract everything from here, and I don't think they're going to give us that kind of time..." he said with an amazingly even tone, glancing back over to the monitors to emphasize his point.

Roxanne looked over and saw the three columns of alien troops now marching out from the crater, two of the lines curling around the blast site's circumference to join the first, which was already headed forward in a straight line.

A line she realized was coming directly to them.

Glancing back at Megamind, Roxanne scowled as she felt her stomach knot again, as it had behind the machine. She stepped closer to him, grabbing his wrist instead of the keys he held in that hand. Leaning in she looked him right in the eyes, whispering fiercely, "I told you before, I won't let you sacrifice yourself..."

Megamind smiled happily at her words, daring to reach up and place two of his fingers upon her lips to silence her. She stared at him with wide eyes, stunned to silence by the boldness of his action.

He whispered back to her, lowering his hand from her lips. "Though I'm as ready now as I was then to put myself in harms way to protect you, that won't be necessary this time. I have more options, now," he said with a devilish smile. With that he turned his head, causing her to turn hers to follow his gaze. They watched as eight monstrous, headless robots, twenty feet tall each, came lumbering out of the dark depths of Evil Lair.

"What are those?" she asked in stunned silence as the massive robots trundled by, making their way towards the hole in the wall. Their bodies were covered with spikes, she noted.

"Brawnbots," Megamind answered plainly, looking back at her as he added, "They were today's scheme. They'll buy us some time so we can make our escape." Roxanne watched as the robots reached the wall and climbed out of the lower hole, one by one, noticing that their backs bristled with weapon arrays, including gattling guns, missles, and...laser cannons?

She turned back to Megamind, smirking and lifting an eyebrow. "So...robots with spikes and lasers, huh?"

outHe blinked at her words, blushing as he remembered their banter from just an hour or so ago. He cleared his throat, smiling with a shrug. "What can I say? You know me well...temptress..."

She smirked at him, rolling her eyes at his words. "You're just predictable," she countered, her warm voice laced with amusement. Roxanne found comfort in the familiarity of their banter as she took the keys from his hands and looked into those green eyes, pleased to see the same happiness there.

"Maybe I'll show you later just how _un_preditable I can be." He smiled widely, waggling his eyebrows as her eyes flew wide at his vague, yet suggestive claim. "Please start the car and wait for us. We'll be there shortly..." With that he winked at her and smiled, then sprinted over to where the eighth robot was standing by the hole, waiting for its master.

Roxanne blinked as he suddenly left, watching him for a moment with that same stunned look on her face. Then a smile slowly bloomed on her lips as she shook her head.

The brunette glanced at Metroman and saw him staring at her with a furrowed brow. Her friend had watched the exchange she shared with the blue alien and it disturbed him, a fact he made quite clear by the glare he now fixed her with.

Roxanne read his thoughts on his face and the smile vanished from hers. She crossed her arms, shifting her weight to one hip as she confronted him. "Got something to say, Wayne?" came her indignant query, the look in her eyes further daring him to make a comment.

Looking pointedly at her, the hero said simply, "What are you doing? He's a villain, Roxanne. He's been nothing but trouble from the start. It's all he ever will be."

Sighing, she closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. The wound on her head was starting to get the better of her, now that things had slowed down a little, though it didn't hurt as much as before. "We'll talk about this later," she told him sternly, her tone allowing for no argument. "Let's just worry about getting out of here in one piece, okay?" Opening her eyes to glance back at the hero, she stared at him. The muscular man shrugged, looking down and away from the sharpness of her gaze.

Sighing in frustration, she looked around for a moment to see that Minion had long since finished with this section of the lair while she and Megamind had been talking. The two of them were now standing alone in an empty space. The henchfish had moved on, she could hear the de-gun's constant zapping from elsewhere, and see could see the repeated blue flashes off in the darkness of the cavernous building. Brainbots whizzed out of the darkness with their loads of cubes, safely stored in their undercarriages.

Metroman crossed his arms. "So your plan is for us to leave with the supervillain and his henchman?"

"Are you going to fly us out of here?" she countered sarcastically, not in the mood for the argument.

"I can still move at super speed," he reminded her, "I can run away with you to somewhere safe and we can let these two fend for themselves."

Roxanne gasped at his words, "Wayne! How can you say that?"

Metroman crossed his arms. "They're clearly fine on their own. I don't think they need our help to survive this."

The brunette considered his words as she looked over to the hole in the far wall. The eighth brawnbot had lifted its master up in its palm so he could see out the hole. He was speaking into his watch, probably giving instructions to the other seven outside, she reasoned. Just then she heard the whoosh of missles firing and saw clouds of smoke from their exhaust blooming outside the holes in the wall as Megamind's forces unleashed its first volley against the coming horde.

"You're right, they don't need our help," Roxanne answered in a half-distracted tone, her thoughts far away. Turning her attention back to the hero, she said further, "but maybe we need theirs." When she saw Metroman's reaction, she quickly added, "Wayne, you're vulnerable against that weird armored guy, and let's face it - these 'planet killers' are going to walk all over the military."

Metroman frowned, glancing over to the wall as they heard more volleys of rockets, followed by the crackle and flash of lasers firing and the rumble of heavy machine gun fire. He knew she was right, as much as he hated to admit it. Even if she wasn't right, he knew he could never convince her otherwise. She had made up her mind, and if there was one thing he knew about Roxanne, it was that she had a stubborn streak a mile wide.

For whatever reason, his good friend had decided to put her faith in Megamind, Incredibly Handsome Criminal Genius and Master of All Villainy.

Sure, the hero could easily just whisk her away from here, and there wouldn't be a thing she could do to stop him. But he knew their friendship would be over if he did that, and that was a price he wouldn't pay for anything.

As usual, he was trapped in what life gave him, with no real choice. He nodded at her, looking down. She smiled brilliantly at him, her gratitude shining in her eyes. "Thank you, Wayne," she told him warmly. "Now come on, we've got to get the car ready...!" With that, she dashed off into the lair, Metroman sighing and then sullenly following behind her at a walk.

As she dashed through the dim lighting of Evil Lair, Roxanne was soon greeted with the sight of a classic car, covered in spikes and...was that some kind of flying motorcycle, or something?

Shrugging it off, she decided to ask Megamind about it later. Opening the driver's seat door, she hopped in, plugged the key in the ignition and started the car. The large V8 engine rumbled to life, the countless instruments and buttons on the dash lighting up, making her think of a Christmas tree. She waited for about a minute, quickly growing restless. Glancing at her watch, Roxanne frowned as she wondered when Minion and Megamind would show up.

Off in the distance, the sounds of the battle between Megamind's Brawnbots and the approaching army rumbled, like thunder. The brunette stepped out of the car and stood, looking over the car's roof in the direction she had run from. Metroman had just reached the car when she did.

"Have you seen them?" she asked anxiously, starting to get worried.

He shook his head and simply answered, "No." Opening the passenger side, he climbed in and closed the door behind him. Roxanne scowled at him through the roof of the car, muttering unlady like commentary to herself. Shaking her head to shrug it off, she looked off into the darkness of Evil Lair, getting more worried with each passing second.

Seconds ticked into minutes, which rolled by one after the other. Time seemed to stand still as she waited and waited, the thunder of the combat off in the distance rolling on, punctuated more and more with explosions that were getting louder and louder each time.

By contrast, all around her was nothng but the dark stillness, which became oppressive as she started to fear the worst with each increasingly loud sound she heard off in the distance.

Suddenly a blue bolt of energy shot out of the darkness and struck the motorcycle next to the car, making the brunette nearly jump out of her skin. The compressed blue cube clattered to the ground. Another brainbot whisked in to collect the item, zooming off as quickly as it arrived. Out of the darkness lumbered Minion, his wide smile greeting Roxanne.

"Hi, Miss Ritchi!" he greeted her just as pleasantly as if it were only the beginning of yet another kidnapping, not the start of a war.

"Hi there, Minion," she answered warmly, smiling kindly at the gentle fish, his kind nature always managing to warm her heart. "Where's Megamind?" she asked with more worry in her voice than she expected as the l as a glowing blue cubeargest explosion yet rocked the far reaches of the building.

"Oh, he'll be right along," the fish answered without concern, strolling up to the driver's side door. "Better let me do the driving though, Miss Ritchi, if you don't mind," he told her. "Maneuvering an invisible car through traffic can be pretty tricky, especially when we're running from something..." his toothy grin again belied the seriousness of their situation, helping to ease Roxanne's anxiety and fear.

"Sure," she answered with a relieved smile, stepping away from the driver's seat to allow Minion to enter the vehicle. She hadn't really wanted to do the driving, anyway.

The henchfish nodded at her and smiled widely, seating himself in the car. "Just have a seat in the back, we'll leave as soon as the boss joins us," he told her before closing the door as he buckled himself in. She nodded and moved towards the rear door as Minion closed his. "Oh, hi there, Metroman!" she heard his muffled greeting to the hero next to him. The henchfish continued to babble on to the hero, but Roxanne wasn't paying attention.

She opened the backseat door behind the driver's seat, but couldn't bring herself to get in the car just yet. Instead, she rested her forearms on the roof and leaned on the vehicle, looking out into the empty, dark stillness of Evil Lair, frowning more as the rumbles and explosions on the far side of the building got louder and louder.

The seconds dragged by for what seemed like lifetimes as the noise got so loud that she thought the enemy forces would suddenly swarm out of the darkness and surround the car.

Becoming sickeningly worried, Roxanne was about to say something to Minion when the building was suddenly wracked by a massive explosion out in the darkness that shook the foundations and caused her heart to jump up into her throat.

"Megamind?!" she called out in panic, staring back into the darkness. She was about ready to run into the empty Evil Lair to look for him, when suddenly she saw his skinny figure with its big head come running towards them.

"Go, go, go!" he shouted as he dashed to the backseat door on the passenger side, his face stricken with panic. Roxanne's eyes flew wide open as she heard and saw his urgency. Minion revved the engine in answer, readying the car. The brunette ducked inside and slammed the door behind her, just as Megamind opened his door and dove in. As soon as they were both in, Minion dropped it into gear and the rear wheels squealed when he hit the gas, filling the space with the smell of hot rubber.

The sedan lurched forward, quickly picking up speed. Minion turned sharply towards the wall, the centripetal force slamming Megamind's door shut.

Roxanne looked down at Megamind with a relieved sigh, smiling at him warmly. The blue alien pulled himself up off of the bench seat, his head having landed close to her lap when he dove in. He glanced back and met her gaze, smirking wryly. "Told you I'd be ohkaay," he said plainly as he sat up, dusting himself off in a very leisurely way, attempting to regain his air of nonchalance.

Roxanne lifted her eyebrows at his comment and was about to say something witty in reply when she chanced to glance out the front windshield, only to see Minion driving like a bat out of hell for the outer wall of Evil Lair. She screamed as the car came to where it should have hit the brick barrier, diving down into the seat with closed eyes and her hands over her head, fully expecting to die when the car crumpled into an accordion upon impact.

When nothing happened, she swallowed nervously, her pulse racing in her ears. Opening her eyes, she realized that daylight now filled the speeding car's cabin. The next thing she realized was that her dive had taken her head first into Megamind's lap.

She flushed a bright pink, closing her eyes in frustration. Roxanne huffed before she forced herself to glance up at him. He was looking down at her with a smile that was somewhere between amused, pleased, and wicked. The word smolder came to her mind. The redness on her cheeks only deepened as she looked into those emerald eyes, the look on his face stirring up feelings within her that she quickly tried to push back down, but with marginal success. She sat up and crossed her arms, glaring pointedly at him, silently daring him to say anything.

He held up both hands in mock surrender, still smirking at her.

Clearing her throat, she looked away from him out the window, her cheeks still burning brightly.

"Well," he said after a few moments of silence. "At least I finally made you scream..."


	6. Chapter 6

The invisible car barrelled down the street as it erupted from the holographic wall of Evil Lair. The classic chassis shimmered as it faded from sight, hiding itself and the four unique individuals it carried as it sped off at breakneck speed.

Roxanne glanced over at Megamind's crack about her scream, fixing him with a glare while he smirked at her. He met her gaze unflinchingly, his expression smug and satisfied. In his eyes she saw crowing satisfaction at his accomplishment of finally making her scream and at her resulting embarrassment. She also noted the underlying adoration in his eyes as he watched her, his gaze tinged with a certain tenderness.

The blue man's smile warmed considerably as she wordlessly peered at him. It was a gesture she couldn't resist returning in kind, in spite of herself. As she slowly lost the battle with herself and a her lips lilted up into a smile, his own smile grew wide and affectionate. Before long, they were sharing goofy grins with one another.

The mood was shattered, however, when Megamind's wristwatch began beeping loudly. He looked down at it, his expression suddenly turning dark and serious. He sighed heavily, Roxanne frowning with concern at his reaction.

"Minion," he said simply, cutting off the brunette's words before she could open her mouth to ask.

"Right," the henchfish replied tensely. Touching a button on the dash, the henchfish brought to life a small monitor in the center of the car's dashboard. The three passengers all looked at the display while Minion pointedly watched the road, avoiding of the picture on the screen.

They were greeted with regularly switching video feeds of the inside of Evil Lair, exactly as it had been before Minion dehydrated everything and the brainbots evacuated the cubes. The darkly dressed soldiers swarmed throughout the building, looking in every possible hiding space for them.

"How...?" Roxanne said in a confused voice, "I saw Minion clear out the place...!"

Grinning at her she puzzled over it, Megamind answered, "so he did." The azure alien paused as she looked over at him, his lips curled in a kind, yet amused grin. "But you also saw a solid brick wall that we drove into..."

Her eyes grew wide as she looked at Megamind with amazement. "It's an illusion...a hologram...all of it," she said to him, staring into his increasingly satisifed emerald gaze. She glanced back at the display, which was switching constantly from camera to camera within Evil Lair. "you're buying us more time by letting their army search an empty building." She paused, continuing to watch. "The detail is amazing! You've recreated everything that was there, perfectly...!" It astounded her that he could do such a thing.

"Clever," Metroman responded with a begrudging admiration at the tactic.

"But that's not all," the blue alien added, his grin growing wicked. Roxanne furrowed her brow, about to ask what he meant.

"Sir?" Minion interrupted with a heavy voice, "They're starting to pull out."

Glancing back at the display, Roxanne saw that the troops had indeed just started to withdraw.

"It's time, then," Megamind said simply, with a small sigh. He touched his watch several times then turned a couple of dials and the complex, compact display changing with each action. Roxanne was about to ask what he meant when the car was suddenly rocked by a massive, earth-shattering explosion behind them.

Roxanne gasped in shock and turned, looking out the rear window. Metroman also twisted in his seat to look back, the muscular man blurting out, "Holly Hannah!"

Behind them, a rapid series of massive detonations erupted from within the building, ripping Evil Lair apart while many smaller blasts went off around its perimeter. The feed on the display became static, its hissing the only sound within the car. The white noise mixed strangely with the loud rumbling of the percussive blasts from behind them. A wave of heat struck the car as it sped away. The debris began landing heavily and loudly around the building as a massive column of thick smoke began to rise above the now leveled structure. As it rose above the horizon, the rapidly ascending pitch black column contrasted sharply with the brilliant hues of the setting sun.

Minion reached over and wordlessly flipped a switch, killing the display. The car fell silent.

"My God," Roxanne muttered in awe as she stared at the awesome sight, unable to look away, the red light from the burning structure illuminating her stunned expression.

Orange balls of fire plumed out of the crumbling remains of the building, blending at their tops into the massive column of dark smoke that curled up ever higher into the sky. It took a few moments before the shock wore off and she realized the massive blow they just struck at the enemy with. Just how many of the alien soldiers had been inside when Megamind had set off the charges?

Then she noticed the obsidian tower standing tall over the burning wreckage of Evil Lair, a strange black twin to the thick column of dark smoke that was rising steadily higher.

This was far from over.

"Well done, little buddy," she heard Metroman whisper in awe as he too looked on in amazement.

The brunnette turned to Megamind to offer him her own praise, only to be greeted by a look filled with lament. It only took her a second to put it all together.

"You destroyed your home to save us," she said breathlessly, doubly astounded by the realization.

He hesitated, unable to speak at first then shrugged. "A small sacrifice," he said, but the tone of his voice belied his words. Dropping his gaze from hers, he added, "It had to be done."

Roxanne exchanged a brief glance with Wayne, gratified to see by the sullen look on the hero's face that he too appreciated what Megamind and Minion had just given for the safety of all of them. Turning her gaze back to Megamind, she refused to let it go.

Sliding closer to him on the seat, she reached out and touched his shoulder, causing him to look back up into her eyes. "That was your _home_," she said firmly, adding, "for _twenty years_," suddenly remembering what Megamind had said just earlier to rebuke Metroman. "There's nothing small about that."

She looked deeply into his troubled gaze, his emerald eyes full of pain and uncertainty. He swallowed, her touch weakening his resolve as he looked down again to gather himself.

He shrugged again. "It doesn't matter," he insisted in a trembling voice, once more lifting his gaze back to hers. He stared deeply into her blue eyes, his expression heavy with emotion. "Everything truly important to me is in this car."

Roxanne sucked in her breath at his words, her heart melting at his sincerity. She slid her hand upon his shoulder over his back and pulled Megamind to her in a tight embrace,wrapping her other arm about him. He resisted for only a moment, then collapsed into her arms, burying his face into the crook between her shoulder and neck. In her eyes, she felt the sting of tears as she squeezed him to her, pressing his lean body against hers while she tenderly rubbed his back. His arms slid around her and he squeezed back just as tightly, holding onto her as if his life depended upon it.

Metroman looked on for a moment, but quickly turned forward in his seat to respect their privacy. He glanced over at Minion, who spared a moment from watching the road to meet the hero's gaze. The two watched each other briefly, then looked back out the front window as the silence from the backseat lengthened. Neither of the two behind them were making any move to separate any time soon.

Silence settled over the four as they raced away from the burning inferno that consumed Evil Lair, away from the towering obsidian obelisk, the invisible car unseen by all.

* * *

"So does that put us over the top?" the Mayor asked the group of people sitting with him at the long, rectangular table. Budget meetings were always one of the most tedious parts of his job, but regretfully necessary. Especially this one.

"I think it should," a woman answered from down the length of the conference table. "With the budget cuts and the additional taxes, we'll have just enough."

"Fantastic!" the Mayor smiled. "I know all this won't at first be very popular with many in the city, but I think everyone will eventually gladly swallow these measures, once they've seen what they buy." He grinned at the approving faces surrounding him at the table, "By this time, next year, the Metroman museum will be complete!"

"In the years ahead, we should more than make up the cost in additional revenue from tourism," a thin man on the far side of the room pointed out, adjusting his glasses.

"Exactly!" the Mayor proclaimed, nodding at the fellow as murmers of approval were heard around the table.

Suddenly the double doors burst open, as a couple of men dashed into the room quickly. "Mr. Mayor, Mr Mayor!" the assitant mayor exclaimed, the police chief following wordlessly one step behind him.

"Yes, what is it?" the Mayor asked, furrowing his brow at the two.

"We found out what that large explosion was," he answered. "A massive...object smashed into the ground at the outskirts of the city, out in the old Industrial district. This thing is huge, it's got to be ten stories tall! The impact levelled three blocks around it in every direction..."

The Mayor frowned, lifting an eyebrow. "This sounds like it'll be Megamind's biggest ploy yet. It's far beyond anything he's created before, I'm surprised he was able to build something so large." he answered without hesitating. The people at the table with him all nodded and murmured in agreement. "Has he called Metroman out yet?"

"It's not Megamind," the police chief answered definitively in his rough, gravelly voice.

The Mayor furrowed his brow, confused and slightly concerned. "Well," he started to answer hesitantly, shrugging,"It doesn't matter. Metroman will deal with the issue, either way."

"He already tried," the chief answered.

"What do you mean..._tried_?" the Mayor asked, his voice wavering as the worry of the two men started to infect him. There was muttering from around the table at the ominous words.

The gruff, burly police chief answered, "Tourists on the observation decks at the top of Metro Tower report that Metro Man already landed by the tower, but was greeted by some strange person that exited the object. The two spoke briefly, but then the mystery man hit Metro Man with some sort of ray. The blast knocked him into one of the buildings nearby. The stranger then charged in after him, riding some sort of large animal that also exited the object. A few minutes later both the stranger and its animal both came flying out again, at which point an army started to march out of the object that had crashed."

"What?' the Mayor asked incredulously at the news of an invading army, starting to rise out of his seat. "So where's Metroman now?"

"That's just it," the police chief answered, looking grim. "Nobody ever saw him leaving the building." He hesitated, causing the mayor to frown even more. "The soldiers started marching towards the same building. Several robots came out of the building that Metro Man was blasted into and started fighting with the approaching army. They were overwhelmed, the army poured into the old building, and then..." The chief hesitated, sharing a concerned look with the assistant mayor.

"And then what...?!" the mayor asked in a fairly panicked voice.

Looking back at the mayor, chief finished, "The building exploded. That's what the second, smaller blast was."

The mayor looked at the two incredulously, furrowing his brow. "What about Metroman?" he asked quietly with a fear-laced voice.

"He hasn't been seen since," the chief answered, looking deeply concerned.

"My God," the Mayor answered, looking afraid as he stared off into space.

"Jake," he said to the Assitant Mayor, "Get me the Governor on the phone..."

* * *

The long shadows of the twilight hour followed the Invisible Car as it sped along the empty road, racing away from the Industrial District and the city. It slowed while approaching a deserted intersection between the two barren roads, but only enough to make the turn without flipping. The transparent vehicle then sped up again, the engine roaring as it charged down the new road that brought it parallel with the edge of Metro City

Within the car, all four were silent. Roxanne and Megamind were still wrapped up together in their embrace, neither of them having moved or spoken since she pulled him to her. In the front seat, Minion and Metroman had only talked enough to agree where they were going, the entire short discussion having been exchanged in hushed whispers, after which they said not a word.

Metroman had quickly offered up his Secret Hideout to Minion as a place where they could all stay for the night and regroup. Having nowhere else to go, and not wanting to disturb his boss, the henchfish agreed. Metroman gave him the directions. The hero's hideout's was ideal for both its secrecy and its location, being on the far side of Metro City from where the alien ship now towered and Evil Lair had previously stood, just minutes ago.

In the backseat, Roxanne looked out the window as the countryside rolled by. She watched the trees, farms, and empty spaces they passed as the fading light cast lengthening shadows over everything, the sun kissing the horizon behind her. Her arms were securely wrapped around Megamind's wiry frame, her one hand lazily sliding up and down his back. She hadn't thought he was going to let her hold him at first, the way his whole body had gone rigid at her touch. But then, within the space of a heartbeat, he relaxed into her embrace. She'd heard a happy sigh come from the tips of his toes as he simply melted against her.

Once that happened, she couldn't wipe the smile off her face. Never before had she felt such utter contentment in another. She just couldn't bring herself to end the hug before he seemed ready.

In all the time they'd been on the road since then, he'd barely moved. This actually suited her. She felt surprisingly pleased holding him, and the quiet gave her much needed time to think about everything that had happened.

Her mind was reeling. She marvelled at the number of times that Megamind had helped her or saved her this afternoon after everything had started off as just another, boring, run-of-the-mill kidnapping. A wry smirk flitted across her lips when she realized that his kindness and concern for her would have been far more inscrutable if she hadn't first stumbled into the latent realization that Megamind was, in fact, a fairly toothless villain.

If he was even a villain at all.

How had she missed it for all these years? In hindsight, it seemed so obvious. She looked back on his countless schemes and saw the signs so clearly now.

Some reporter she was.

It confused and frustrated her that she had failed for so long to come to the logical conclusion.

Roxanne had never taken him to be any kind of real threat, even from the first kidnapping. In spite of all his efforts and bravado, or perhaps because of them, she'd only found him mildly entertaining and the kidnappings annoying. The rest of the city may have been afraid of him, but from her vantage point up close, she could just never see it. It always seemed to her like he was trying too hard.

Of course, the next big question in her mind was - why did he pretend to be evil? What was the purpose of his charade? Why did Megamind want her and the city to believe himself to be evil? Why, when he clearly didn't have a malicious or cruel bone in his body, did he seem to believe it himself so strongly?

Most importantly, could he ever accept or admit that he was not a villain?

With everything that happened right after her epiphany, there had been no time to even form those questions that now sprang naturally to her mind. Throughout that insane hour that followed, she had been stunned by his repeated acts of kindness and selflessness. His choices gave her increasing conviction for her growing belief that he was not evil, but was in fact a good man, hidden underneath layers of denial and wrapped in the thick shell of a facade.

As she thought about all that he had done for her, today, memories of their years playing the roles of kidnapper and victim ran through her mind in a whole new light. The banter they repeatedly enjoined in now took on new meaning as she realized they had been flirting with each other the whole time. She blushed furiously at the thought of it, not sure at all how she felt now, especially in the light of his overt kindness from today.

The only thing that surprised her more than those actions of his was how gutwrenchingly terrified she had become for him when he tried to put himself in harms way for her sake. Roxanne didn't even know how to process the primal fear she had felt well inside her for his safety, but she suspected what it meant. She didn't think she was ready for that, but wondered if she even had a choice in the matter.

The only thing she did know for certain was that she couldn't deny what she'd felt.

She sighed heavily.

Thinking of that harrowing moment caused her brain to, against her will, summon up once more the harsh image that had flashed in her mind at the time. In the blink of an eye, she again imagined that he had dashed out from behind the machine they had hid behind to draw their attacker away from her. As it had before, her mind cruelly conjured up the vision of him burnt to a crisp by a crimson bolt, his blue skin turning soot black as his body crumpled to the concrete in a lifeless heap, steam and smoke curling off his corpse.

As the nightmarish scenario wickedly flashed again into her mind, she shivered, sucking in her breath and gripping him even more tightly. Closing her eyes as the tears welled up, she pressed her cheek to his, nuzzling his face that was still nestled in the crook of her neck and shoulder. He squeezed her back just as strongly which brought a weak smile to her lips, in spite of the horrific vision still haunting her mind.

"What's wrong?" she heard him ask quietly with a deep-seated concern, his lips close to her ear, his breath warm on her skin. She shivered again, but not out of fear this time.

"Nothing," she lied as best she could, cursing inwardly as her voice cracked. She cleared her throat, blinking several times.

Megamind pulled away, but only just enough to look into her eyes, keeping his arms loosely about her, as she did about him. She was relieved that it was night now, the sun having fallen completely beneath the horizon during the reverie she indulged in during their embrace. The dark would hide the tears she was fighting back.

He was about to say something when she beat him to it.

Whispering, she said with a playful grin, "So that was quite the long hug you indulged in...taking advantage of my sympathy, Megamind?" Her words were clearly not serious, given that they still held onto each other. While not holding on as tightly, neither seemed willing to let go.

She caught him off guard, just as she had hoped, deflecting his concern enough for her to get a hold of herself. He couldn't resist the lure of her banter, his lips twisting into a wry smirk. "Why, Miss Ritchi," he whispered back, just as coy, "I _am_ a villain. Taking advantage of my victims is what I do best..."

Chuckling softly at his words, she smiled from ear to ear as she stared into his emerald gaze, which was surprisingly luminescent in the dark. A set of oncoming headlights showed half of his face briefly, then vanished upon passing, leaving him again deep in shadow. The half moon was out and provided some light, but not enough for her to see him in full detail without further aid.

Unknown to her, the oncoming headlights had also given him a view of her moist eyes, of her tears that had almost spilled out. He chose to not press her on the matter, but filed it away in his massive brain for later.

"Villain?" she asked skeptically in a hushed tone. "Mmm, I don't think so." her grin lilted even more at the look that she saw in his eyes as the light of a lone streetlight on the dark, country road briefly shone into the cabin. "As I remember, we've already debunked that particular delusion of yours, just before all the excitement..."

He blinked in surprise, having apparently forgotten about that, with everything that happened. She grinned all the more as he took a moment to gather his wits, enjoying as always the feeling she got from putting him on his back foot.

"No, no," he countered as he recovered, his voice quiet, yet amused, "you offered an alternate theory, that's all." She lifted her eyebrows at his words, "but you've yet to prove it..."

She tsked softly, slowly shaking her head. "Megamind," she whispered tenderly, "you gave me the proof today, with everything that you did." Reaching up, she caressed his cheek, watching with satisfaction as he failed to keep his eyes open at her touch. He covered her hand with his, smiling and sighing happily, leaning his head into her palm.

Moving in to press her cheek to his other, Roxanne whispered into his ear, "you untied me, you cared for me when I was hurt, you saved my life several times, you tried to sacrifice yourself to protect me, and you destroyed your home to save us all..." She his breathing quicken against her. Her smile bloomed.

"Hero," she intoned with a gentle finality, whispering sweetly in his ear and placing lingering a kiss upon his cheek. Roxanne felt a shiver run through his body as she breathed the word against his skin.

Megamind inhaled deeply at the touch of her lips, his breath trembling. She smiled from ear to ear at the feeling of his reaction, the way his heart pounded in his chest with their bodies now again pressed together after she moved in to whisper to him. Her own heart beat just as heavily, and she suddenly felt warm from head to toe, her stomach knotting nervously at their sudden intimacy.

He then pulled away to look into her eyes, his own wide in shock as her name for him finally registered in his massive, yet very distracted brain. Hero. From Roxanne Ritchi. He was stunned by her words. Random lights from passing cars and street lamps teased them with glimpses of each other as he stared at her in wide-eyed wonderment while she looked steadily back at him with a tender smile and adoring eyes. Neither said another word.

They leaned close as they stared at each other, drawn together.

Roxanne's heart hammered in her ears as she realized what was about to happen. A small, yet vocal part of her protested because of who this was. The rest of her quickly overwhelmed that minority, her desire for him drowning out all reason within her. She felt her stomach knotting up nervously in anticipation att he last second.

In the darkness, their lips met, touching lightly, hesitantly. She felt Megamind's body tremble, just as a shiver shot straight up her spine, causing her to grip him in her arms while they tentatively kissed. Suddenly his lips pressed against hers firmly, caressing hers with an unbridled passion, stealing her breath away as he squeezed her tightly against him. Any ability she had to think was stolen away. She softly moaned against him, gliding her tongue over his lips.

Megamind felt as though he were in a dream when she first pressed her lips to his. He hesitated, his mind still reeling from her naming him Hero and then the first shock of her kissing him. Never in his life had he been more confused, his massive brain a raging storm of passion for this woman, terror that he would do something wrong or that she would be unhappy afterwards, pride and distress conflicting within him at her praise for him, and total disbelief in his fortune as her lips pressed against his.

How had this happened to him?

Suddenly his mind switched off and he started to lose himself in the kiss, the passion he felt for her driving him to show her the passion he felt for her. He instinctively wrapped himself about her more tightly, his strong, thin arms pressing her body firmly against his as he felt his hunger for her growing. When his lips grew more urgent against hers, he was shocked to feel her tongue brush over his lips, which he reflexively parted for her. He sucked in his breath as she explored, hesitating a few moments before meeting her tongue with his. He heard her moan into the kiss, causing him to smile against her lips while they caressed one another so tenderly.

Roxanne lost all sense of herself and where they were, there was only this man and their kiss. Her heart raced as he responded to her so hungrily, a deep, gut-wrenching passion surging within her in answer as she matched his growing intensity, feeling a tidal wave of desire well up within her. Nothing had ever felt so right. She lost her self in the feel of his lips and the press of his body against hers, never wanting this moment to end.

Suddenly the car jerked to a stop as the brakes squealed, causing the two of them to slide forward on the smooth leather seat that was without safety belts. They were broken out of the kiss abruptly, each grabbing the back of their seat to avoid hitting the front seat while still half embracing, both trying to likewise save the other from the same.

"We're here!" Minion unwittingly announced happily as he stopped the car, oblivious to what was going on in the backseat. The henchfish and Metroman promptly opened their doors and got out, flooding the cabin with the dome light on the ceiling of the interior. The two walked off into the darkness outside, Minion closing his door while Metro Man left his wide open, thus keeping the light on.

Roxanne and Megamind didn't move, both in total shock. They were blinking painfully at the sudden bright light, staring at each other in utter disbelief, agape at what had just happened and how abruptly it had ended. Neither spoke, both still breathing heavily from the passionate kiss they had shared. The reporter flushed a deep crimson while the blue alien turned a bright purple. He watched her with abject fear as he naturally expected the worst. It was lost on him why this had happened, but surely it was a mistake that she would not repeat.

The brunette was drowning in a sea of conflicting emotions as she stared back at him with wide eyes. She wasn't sure what she'd expected to see on his face, but fear hadn't really been on the list. Was he disgusted by her? She was as alien to him as he was to her, after all. But that didn't make sense, he had been just as aggressive as she had been. Her confusion wasn't helped by her inner conflict about having done it at all, let alone the surprising fervor with which she had done it.

What was she doing?

Roxanne's expression fell ever so slightly as she started to feel the conflict now well up within her.

Megamind closed his mouth and swallowed as he saw her face. Here it was.

"It's okay," he forced himself to say. "You don't need to say anything," he assured her, the emotion heavy in his ragged voice. She furrowed her brow in confusion. Swallowing, he looked down, adding weakly, "I understand..." He turned away to open the door, suddenly feeling an urgent need to quickly get far away from her and this latest and worst rejection of his life. The shame, humiliation, and bitter emptiness hit him like a tidal wave, overwhelming him like never before.

"What?!" she cried out, more confused than ever by his reaction. Suddenly that same urgent terror from before surged within her again, this time as he moved to leave. She desperately lunged, grabbing his wrist as he reached for the door handle.

Megamind froze in shock as she grabbed his wrist so violently. He looked down at her hand gripping his arm with iron fingers, taking a moment to stare at it to be sure it that what he thought had just happened did indeed happen.

"What are you talking about?" she demanded in a hushed whisper, realizing their voices would carry outside through the open passenger seat door. In the back of her mind, she wondered why Minion and Metro Man hadn't called after them, or come back to look for why they still lingered in the car.

Megamind blinked in confusion."You...you've realized your mistake, in..." he hesitated "in kissing me," he finally answered in a trembling voice. When she didn't answer, he hesitantly glanced back at her, his face a portrait pain and confusion. "Haven't you?"

Her heart twisted when she saw the haunted look in those emerald eyes. Rejection. A history of rejection, the expectation of it and never anything else. A lifetime of hurt and exclusion.

But, hadn't he earned it, villain that he was?

Yet, he wasn't really a villain, she suddenly remembered as her certainty of that newly discovered truth came rushing back.

Nothing made sense anymore, but the pain she saw in his eyes tore her apart.

When she hesitated, Megamind looked down and tried to pull away, unable to bear it any longer. He tried to free his wrist from her grip, but Roxanne held him even more tightly as he tugged.

"Roxanne," he pleaded with a broken voice, not understanding why she didn't just push him away and be done with it. Why was she dragging it out like this? "Roxanne, please..." he begged her, closing his eyes and hoping she'd just end it already. All of his past rejections combined didn't hurt as badly as this one.

She couldn't stand it anymore, the heartbreak was too much. She cupped his cheek in her free hand and pulled on him to face her. He resisted at first, but she gripped his chin between her thumb and fingers and pulled forcefully, refusing to take no for an answer. His eyes jerked open at this, his agonized emerald eyes greeting her with shock at her actions, but yet with the expectation of the final rejection to follow.

Staring into his fearful green gaze with blue eyes that were steady with solemn sincerity, she slowly and passionately told him, "I did not make a mistake."

His eyes flew wide at her words and he opened his mouth to speak, but she didn't let him. She leaned in fast, pressing her lips to his. He tried to speak, but the sound only came out muffled against her lips as she passionately kissed him. Roxanne was relentless, putting her hands firmly on his shoulders and roughly pushing him back against the seat, her kiss growing more urgent and intense with each passing heartbeat, rubbing his lips with hers, delving deeply with her tongue to wrestle with his as he tried to use it to speak.

He hesitated, too stunned by what was happening to react. She kissed him all the more fervently when he didn't respond, cupping his face in her hands as she climbed into his lap, straddling him with her legs. The urgency she felt welled up from deep inside of her, in her mind she could only see the hurt in his eyes when he had looked back at her, the memory twisting in her heart like a knife.

She was determined to drown out that hurt, to vanquish it forever.

Roxanne kissed him incessantly, intending to keep going until she got the message through to him. Finally, Megamind started to kiss back again, allowing her to relax. She hadn't realized how afraid she'd been that he wouldn't respond in kind. They kissed deeply as she settled into his lap, their tongues entwining while she stroked his face with her hands, caressing him tenderly. She lavished him all the more with affection, her heart melting as he moaned weakly into the kiss.

She smiled against his lips as she felt his hands very hesitantly come to rest upon her hips. Reaching down to grasp his wrists, she guided his arms around her waist. He sighed against her lips as she did, finally relaxing along with her, pulling her tightly against him with strong, yet thin arms. Reaching up to again cup his face, she settled in happily, the long kiss becoming lazy and luxurious. She pressed her body against his as he held her, feeling the slow release of his anxiety.

As they kissed, she suddenly tasted salty wetness upon his lips. Furrowing her brow in surprise, she pulled back to look at him with a worried face. She saw the tears in his emerald eyes that looked up at her, still filled with pain and uncertainty, in spite of all her efforts. Roxanne's heart twisted again at the sight of his inner torment.

"Megamind," she whispered tenderly in a pleading voice, leaning in to place kiss after kiss along where his tears fell, her hands gliding over his cheeks and the sides of his head. Blue lids fell shut as she did, his arms wrapped tightly about her. His breathing was ragged, she could feel his heart pounding in his chest against hers as she pressed her body against him. She lastly placed a tender kiss upon each of his closed eyes. Then she hesitated.

"Did you," she closed her eyes, suddenly afraid, "did you want me to stop...?" she finally asked against his cheek in a hushed whisper, her own insecurity starting to take root at his intensely turbulent and anxious emotions.

"No!" he answered hoarsely in shock, gripping her in his arms more tightly, as if he were afraid she wouldn't wait for his answer before leaving.

Breathing a sigh of relief, she sat up a little and looked into his eyes, smiling widely. He weakly returned the smile, causing hers to bloom even more. Leaning in, she kissed him thoroughly on the lips again. She was a wreck inside. Her own inner turmoil still roiled within her, and she felt exhausted from the intensity of the passions that swirled between them, all the fear, the desire, the hurt, and the hunger. Through it all, though, she began to feel with increasing certainty, deep down within, that this was right.

After briefly hesitating, the blue alien beneath her kissed back just as passionately this time, putting to rest any concerns she had left about his interest. Roxanne rewarded him with a soft moan, smiling as his lips became all the more hungry against hers, their tongues dancing sweetly together as he sighed contentedly from the bottom of his heart. Time dragged on as they lingered in the intimate kiss.

She finally parted her lips from his, feeling emotionally drained. Touching his blue forehead with hers, she closed her eyes and rested against him, stroking his cheeks slowly as she tried to catch her breath. His breathing was just as heavy and just as ragged as he held her, his exhaustion apparent. Neither spoke for a long time.

"Roxanne...?" he finally murmured, after working up his courage.

"Hmm?" she asked gently, not moving from her secure position atop of him, her forehead still against his large blue head, her hands stroking his cheeks.

"What...what does all this mean...?" he asked, his voice laced with fear of what would come next.

She hesitated. Of all the questions he might have asked, this was the one she had no answer for.

But at least now she understood why he had still been so afraid, even as she kissed him so long and so deeply.

"I...I don't know," she said honestly, her voice barely audible. She heard him swallow at her answer. Pulling back just enough to look into his eyes, she watched him, waiting patiently for his blue lids to open, when he was ready.

It took a while, but he finally did. She saw the terror in his gaze, but the underlying courage to face whatever she said.

"I don't know where this is going, or what comes next," she admitted further, caressing his face. "But I want to find out, with you...if that's what you want..."

"Yes!" he answered anxiously, cutting her off. Swallowing, he realized too late he might have appeared too eager. She smiled at him reassuringly, her fingers still playing tenderly upon his cheeks. "Yes," he repeated more quietly, staring into her blue gaze. The smile he saw blossoming on her face at his answer helped relax him. "I want that so very, very much," he said definitively, nodding slightly.

Roxanne drew in a deep breath as she stared down at him, nodding confidently as the smile slowly bloomed on her lips. "Okay. Good," she said. "Let's just take this one step at a time, and see where it takes us..." Megamind nodded eagerly, his eyes at last shining with hope.

The brunette smiled from ear to ear at his increasingly happy expression, a feeling of relief flooding through her. She leaned in and pressed her lips to his once more, sighing happily as she felt him squeeze her tightly to him, at last kissing back eagerly at the first touch of her lips. They enjoyed each other a while longer before she broke the kiss, albeit reluctantly. She rested her forehead against his, but kept her eyes closed.

"We should..." she began hesitantly, not wanting to end their moment, but knowing they had spent a ridiculously long amount of time alone in the invisible car, wherever Minion and Metro Man had driven the four of them. Whatever happened to those two, she wondered inwardly.

"Yeah," he agreed, his voice equally reluctant but at last free of the terror and hurt that started after their first kiss had ended. "We've an alien invasion to fight off, after all," he said with a heavy sigh. She giggled at his words, causing him to chuckle along with her. They opened their eyes together while a smile bloomed upon her lips.

"This is probably about the worst time we could have picked for this..." he said with wry humor, his gaze meeting hers confidently. Her heart soared to see his usual self peeking out. It made her feel better about everything she had just done, helping to quell her concerns about what had just happened between them, about what she had just started without even intending to.

Smiling sweetly at him, she caressed his cheeks all the more. "Most people don't get to choose when this sort of thing happens," she explained warmly, happy to see his smile answer hers. She then whispered to him in a conspiratorial way, her smile wide and genuine as she looked into his eyes. "Actually, it's usually the best kind that sneaks up on two unsuspecting people like this."

Megamind smiled from ear to ear, his eyebrows lifting high upon his forehead. "You think so?" he asked eagerly.

She giggled happily at his gleeful hopefulness, feeling more right about what happened between them with every passing second she spent in his arms. Her heart settled and warmed within her chest as she stared into those green eyes, her doubts finally starting to melt away. "I do," she answered intently and honestly, gazing at him dreamily, stroking his cheeks tenderly. He stared back at her in wonder, his emerald gaze shining.

"So, let's you and me find out, together, if that's what this is," she said confidently, kissing him one last time.

They lingered for a while longer before finally forcing themselves to reluctantly exit the car, the both of them exhausted, yet ready to face whatever came next.


End file.
